CWP No. 6835, 7361, 17570, 19029, 18283, 18337, 20385, 21047, 21068, 21164, 21577, 24274 and 27054 of 2016. Case: Gurminder Kaur and Ors. Vs Director, Education Recruitment Directorate-cum-Director General of School Education and Ors.. High Court of Punjab (India)
| Case Number | CWP No. 6835, 7361, 17570, 19029, 18283, 18337, 20385, 21047, 21068, 21164, 21577, 24274 and 27054 of 2016 |
| Counsel | For Appellant: Deepak Aggarwal, Advocate and For Respondents: Rupam Aggarwal, DAG |
| Judges | Jaishree Thakur, J. |
| Issue | Constitution of India - Articles 14, 16, 341, 341(1), 342, 366(24); Punjab Scheduled Castes and Backward Classes (Reservation in Services) Act, 2006 - Section 5 |
| Judgement Date | March 31, 2017 |
| Court | High Court of Punjab (India) |
Judgment:
Jaishree Thakur, J.
-
Aggrieved by the non-consideration of the caste certificate of the petitioners by the respondents and the denial of benefits of reservation on the basis of the said caste certificate, the instant writ petitions have been filed. Since a common question of law is involved in all these writ petitions, the same are being disposed of by a common judgment. However, the facts are being extracted from CWP No. 6835 of 2016.
-
In brief, the facts are that the petitioner belongs to caste Naai that comes under Backward Class category (BC) and on the basis of that applied for the post of Lecturer (Chemistry) under the reserved category of BC. Being successful in the examination, she was called for scrutiny of the documents on 31.03.2016 by way of public notice issued on the website of the Department. The petitioner thereafter produced all her required documents along with her caste certificate and domicile certificate given by the State of Punjab. The Committee, after scrutiny of the documents, declared her ineligible. However, no written communication was made to this effect. On enquiry, the petitioner came to know that the petitioner has obtained a domicile certificate in Punjab and a caste certificate after her marriage and because she originally belongs to the State of Rajasthan, she cannot be given any benefit available as given to the candidates belonging to BC category of the State of Punjab.
-
Therefore, the sole consideration in these writ petitions is whether a married woman, who belongs to a State other than the State of Punjab prior to her marriage and who was getting the benefit of reservation in that State, would also be entitled to benefit of reservation in the State of Punjab for the purpose of getting employment after she has obtained a domicile here.
-
Counsel for the petitioners contend that the petitioners are entitled to get the benefit of reservation and such benefit cannot be denied to them on the ground that they were born in a different State before their marriage. It is argued that the action of the respondents in not considering the candidature of the petitioners in the reserved category is arbitrary, discriminatory and violative of Articles 14 and 16 of the Constitution of India. It is submitted that a person is born to a particular caste and the caste is by birth. Merely on account of the fact that they have got married and settled in Punjab, though born in a different State, they cannot be denied the benefits of reservation if their caste is recognized under the BC category in the State in which they are currently residing. It is argued that even after their marriage to a person of BC category, they would be entitled to benefits of reservation by virtue of the fact that their husbands too are of the reserved category of BC etc. It is submitted that as per custom, an Indian woman normally would reside with her husband in the State of which he is domiciled in and, therefore, once having shifted from her birth place and becoming a resident of the area where her husband resides, a married woman would also be entitled to seek the benefit of reservation and the denial of the same would not be sustainable.
-
Per contra, learned counsel appearing on behalf of the respondents-State placed reliance on the instructions that have been issued by the Government of Punjab on 17.01.1996 which is to the effect that candidates, who had migrated from other States to the State of Punjab, shall get the benefits of reservation only from the State of...
To continue reading
Request your trial